Arlington Heights, Mount Prospect plant trees for Arbor Day
Arlington Heights and Mount Prospect were among suburban towns planting trees to mark the annual celebration of Arbor Day Friday.
Representatives from the Arlington Heights Park District, the Village of Arlington Heights and students from Dryden Elementary School honored the legacy of Julius Sterling Morton, the founder of Arbor Day, in a ceremony at Dryden Park, 822 E. Rockwell St., where a beech tree was planted.
In Mount Prospect, the Public Works Department hosted a tree planting ceremony in the parkway near the intersection of Deborah Lane and Estates Drive by Forest View Elementary School. The hybrid Exclamation! London planetree was developed by George Ware at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle.
Students performed songs and poems. Members of the Garden Club of Mount Prospect contributed funds to help purchase the tree.
Mount Prospect recently received its 31st consecutive Tree City USA Award from the Arbor Day Foundation.
Mount Prospect Forestry/Grounds Superintendent Dave Hull said that in addition to their aesthetic qualities, trees "have the ability to absorb carbon dioxide and produce oxygen, provide food, medicines and shade, filter pollution, slow stormwater runoff, reduce energy costs and much more."
People interested in information about diversified tree species appropriate for planting in this area can contact public works at (847) 870-5640."